Jacek Kochan : "New expensive head"

(Gowi, 2003)

Jacek Kochan is a monster drummer. Born in Poland, he has been active in the musical scenes of Poland, USA, and Canada since the late 1970s. He is also an arranger, imaginative composer and music producer, but most of all - a superior drummer. His very distinctive modern drumming style is jam-packed and full of rhythmical gradations with stylistic references from the whole history of jazz. He is fully aware of versatile jazz and contemporary music traditions, but at the same time is completely immersed in contemporary fusion, funk, electronic and club beats. He is also very fluent in the language of free jazz, but in contrary to many others modern European drummers, he has no complex of avant-guard. He is a master of sound sampling, and has an exceptional gift of time and style. His smart and intelligent music is filled with nuances, full of space, with layers of acoustic and electronic sounds, and complex textures. As a drummer he does not over-emphasize the role of his instrument, but in contrary he focuses on collective sound, melodies, adventurous arrangements, original harmonies and rhythms.

Kochan's astonishing improvisational creativity makes him one of the most highly regarded and in-demand drummers on the Polish and European jazz scenes. His music engages the listeners, keeps them interested, sometimes puzzled, but always longing for more. Furthermore, Kochan excels in a recording studio environment, where he is able to masterfully utilize many wonders of the modern recording technologies, and at the same time able to restrain himself from the traps of artificial apparatus.

During the last decades, Kochan has played with many of the most important figures of American and European jazz :
in early 80-ties he moved to New York. There he have played and recorded with jazz, funk and r&b bands and studied among the others.with Jaco Pastorius, Mike Clark, Robbie Gonzales.
By the mid 80's, Jacek moved to Montreal, where he further expanded his musical lexicon to include writing for choirs and orchestra (Tudor Singers, Repercussion) as well as playing and recording ethnic music (latin , african , balkan). There he worked with Michel Donato, Karen Young, Andrew Leroux, Yannick Rieu, Oliver Jones, Jean-Pierrre Zanella, Michel Cusson, Katleen Dyson, Helmut Lipsky, Lazaro Saucedo, Geoff Lapp, Johnny Scott and many others, perfoming at the clubs and jazz festivals.
In 1990, after moving to Toronto, he started to work as a leader and sideman in countless live and recording projects with artists like John Abercrombie, Jerry Bergonzi, Pat Labarbera, Kenny Wheeler, Don Thompson, Mike Murley, Neil Swainson, Reggie Schwager, Lorne Lofsky, Bernie Senensky, John MacLeod, Dave Restivo and Brian Dickinson.
In 1995 he returned to Europe where he continues to compose, play, tour and record music with artists like Dave Liebman, Greg Osby, Marc Copland, Gary Thomas, Joey Calderazzo, Palle Mikkelborg, Eddie Henderson, Dave Tronzo, Briggan Krauss, Cuong Vu, Eric Vloeimans, Lars Danielsson, Dave Fiuczynski, Bo Stief, Christian Spering, Michel Benita, Furio DiCastri, Franz Hautzinger, Klaus Dickbauer , Eddie Schuller, Uchihashi Kazuhisa, Axel Dorner, Ernesto Molinari, Francois Corneloup, Krzysztof Knittel, Skerik, Tomas Stanko, Zbigniew Namyslowski, Adam Pieronczyk, Piotr Wojtasik, Assif Tsahar, Tomasz Szukalski, Maciej Sikala and Piotr Baron.

(notes from www.polishjazz.com)

HERE